


One Thing Matt Murdock Can't Do

by Eva_Swan



Category: Daredevil (TV)
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Ice Skating, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-10-01 00:25:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17233976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eva_Swan/pseuds/Eva_Swan
Summary: It's Christmas time, and Matt and Karen go ice-skating... Except Daredevil doesn't know how to ice-skate.





	One Thing Matt Murdock Can't Do

**Author's Note:**

> It's here! This is a Secret Santa gift for karenzpage ♥ and it follows this prompt: " Ice skating date and it's great! (alternatively: It's a failure)"

“So... Did you ask her out yet?”

 

Foggy Nelson's voice brought Matt Murdock out of his reverie.

 

“What?” he blurted out.

 

His friend sighed and cocked his head to the side, his arms crossed over his chest.

 

“Come on, buddy," he pleaded, "you perfectly understood what I just said.”

 

Matt rubbed the back of his neck and then tucked at his tie. Of course he knew what this was about. He just wished he didn't. Anxiety had a name and it was Karen Page.

 

“So, did you?” Foggy insisted.

“I did not,” Matt stated.

His friend's jaw dropped. “Matt!” he whined.

“I know, I know," Matt said before getting up and pacing all around the office. "But... what if she says no?”

“She won't,” Foggy chuckled.

Matt stopped in his tracks and placed his hands on his hips, worry marring his face. “What if she says yes?” he asked.

“Seriously?" Foggy rubbed his face with both hands, trying really hard not to snap at him. "I can't believe you're Daredevil," he sighed. "You beat the shit out of people, you confronted Wilson Fisk, the Punisher, crazy ninjas, a nut who threw all kinds of sharp objects at you... But you're afraid of asking Karen out?”

“It's not the same.”

Foggy could not believe this. “Yeah, it's called _life,_ " he deadpanned. "It's a normal thing to do. And you don't do normal. You're such a freak, Murdock.”

“Nice pep talk, Foggy.”

“I don't know what else to tell you, Matt," Foggy replied, shaking his head in desperation. "I've been trying to get you back together, but you're both complete jackasses. Totally oblivious. Children, really. You already dated once, so why is it so freaking hard for you to get back to it?"

Matt rested his hands on his desk and hung his head. "Because a lot has happened, Foggy," he let out. His friend could feel the shame in his broken voice. He gave him a weak smile and silently nodded, for he knew Matt would get that. He did. "The first time," he continued, "she didn't know about... him. And it was nice. It was great to be around someone who saw me as I wanted to be seen, you know. We were in some sort of... bubble."

"And the bubble burst when you lost your shit over the Hand thingy, yeah I get the picture."

Matt sat. "And Elektra," he swallowed.

"And Elektra," Foggy sighed. "Look, I know it's been a rough year for you. Physically, emotionally, spiritually... But it's been rough for us too. Especially for her. I had Marci. She had no one. Just the ghost of you. She put on a strong face but... Even though she had hope, even though she knew in her guts that you were alive, I know that when she thought she was alone, she couldn't help but cry. Because your absence hurt, man."

Matt hung his head. "You don't need to tell me that. I know I've been an asshole. I want to make it up to her, but... Honestly, I don't know how. Things are definitely better between us, but... Something's off."

"No kidding. What's off is that she still loves you and she doesn't know if you do too because you won't do anything about it!"

"It's 2018, she could make the first move," Matt shrugged.

Foggy buried his face into his hands. "Jesus Fucking Christ," he mumbled, "you did not just say that. _You'_ re the one that screwed up. _You_ 're the one who rejected her. So it's up to _you_ to make the first move. Do I need to draw you a picture?" Oh, Foggy. "You know what I mean," he added.

Matt heaved a sigh. "I do. And you're right. I'm just looking for an excuse. I will ask her out. Eventually."

" _Today_ ," Foggy corrected.

"Next week."

" _Today._ "

"Tomorrow."

" _Today._ "

God, his best friend was such a pain in the ass. "I can't, Foggy!" Matt almost yelled. "I haven't thought this through!"

 

"Hey, guys!" Karen's voice cheered from afar.

 

"Right on time," Foggy said with a grin.

"Foggy, I can't."

His friend winked at him. "But _I_ can." He turned to Karen, who was making her way towards them. "Hey Karen, Matt wants to ask you something."

She laughed. "Hum, okay. I'm all ears."

Matt gulped. "Will you... tell me more about Mrs Jenkins's case?" His friend poked him in the ribs. "Okay, okay..." Matt mumbled. "I was wondering... Maybe, we could... We could... go on a date, sometime?"

"That must've been really painful," Karen joked. Fair enough. "Yes, Matt," she went on. "I will go out with you. Do you have anything in mind?"

"I, hum-"

"Because I had planned to go ice-skating tonight, after work. Does that sound good to you?"

"Fantastic. We'll go straight after work."

She smiled fondly. "It's a date, then."

"Yes, it is."

 

She smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She always did that when he was around. He liked the sound of her hair against her skin. He heard her leave the room, and rubbed the nape of his neck. He was sweating.

 

"See? That wasn't so hard!" his friend laughed.

Matt couldn't see... But Foggy swore his eyes were sending daggers at him. "Foggy, it's a _nightmare,_ " he said nervously.

"Whoa, I hardly see how this could qualify as-"

"I don't know how to ice-skate, Foggy."

Ok. That was... unexpected. "You don't?" Foggy echoed, narrowing his eyes.

Matt shrugged. "I never tried."

"Never?"

" _Never_."

Foggy couldn't help but smirk. "God, I wish I could be there to see that."

"Not helping, man."

"I'm sorry but this is gonna be epic," Foggy laughed. "An epic _fail_."

Matt winced. "I'm definitely looking forward to this date, thank you, Foggy," he deadpanned as he sat on the desk.

Foggy sighed and joined him. "Come on!" he said, resting his hand on his friend's shoulder. "You're going on a date with Karen. Stop acting like you're the Grinch or something. I know you're _delighted_ to spend some quality time with her. I can hear the butterflies in your stomach."

That put a smile on Matt's face. He, too, could literally hear the 'butterflies.' "I am," he admitted. "I'm just... scared."

"That's what love is about, Matthew. Fear and pleasure. Nothing else." Wow, that was deep. Especially for Foggy. Matt burst out laughing, and his friend knew his mission was completed. "Okay," he said while getting up, "gotta get to work."

 

The rest of the day was a long, painful wait for Matt Murdock. He was really excited to be alone with her, hearing his laughter, feeling his skin against his, kissing her. But the ice-skating part... That he was most definitely _not_ looking forward to. Way to look like an idiot in front of the woman you fancy. He knew she wouldn't mind... But he loved to be in control. He needed that. It was hard enough to be in control around her, let alone on the ice.

 

Finally, the workday ended. Karen and Matt made their way out of the building, scarves around their necks, gloves on their hands, they slowly walked down the avenue, not daring to touch, but craving each other more than ever.

 

"I love this time of the year," Karen said, smoke at the tip of her tongue. It was so cold.

Matt furrowed his brows. "You do?"

"Yeah, don't you?"

"Not particularly," he admitted. "It's cold."

"Daredevil's sensitive to the cold?" Karen laughed.

He laughed back, and took a deep breath. "I just don't like it. And Christmas... It's a bittersweet holiday for me. Reminds me of my father."

Karen nodded. "Reminds me of my family too," she said. "You know, I don't like _Christmas_. I like that it brings people closer together. I've felt lonely for a long time, and... Christmas has been challenging. Seeing families, couples all around, shopping or walking down the streets laughing... But to me this holiday is about hope. Hope for the future, hope for warmth. And that might sound silly, but... I'm a hopeless optimistic, despite all the darkness that I know is within me."

 

Her words found their place into his heart. He understood that. He could feel it. He was so caught up in her voice and perfume that he didn't realize they made it to Central Park.

 

"Here we are!" she cheered. "I can't wait, I haven't done this in _ages_. I'm probably gonna be a little rusty."

"Did you use to ice-skate when you were a kid?"

She sighed and looked up. "Yeah, back in Vermont," she replied. "With my brother."

"I'm sorry, I-"

She shook her head. "It's okay, these are good memories. We would... we would sneak out at dawn and ice-skate on the lake near our house. It was the only pretty sight in the area. Vermont is a beautiful state, but Fagan Corners... It's trash, really. Like one big open landfill site. So escaping to the lake in the winter... It was a relief. The snow would cover up the car wrecks all around and everything that was dirty and ugly. It was all white, all pure. I loved how it sparkled in the sun. I loved... the quiet, the way snow muffled the sounds of the town. It was our safe heaven. And at dawn... it was even more beautiful. It was as if the sky splashed its colors onto the snow, coloring it pale pink. It was like our night wasn't over, like we were still dreaming. It was magic."

"Sounds nice," he let out, the sight somehow dancing before his blind eyes. "And I'm glad you told me about Kevin. It's great to know his name."

She hung her head. It was still hard to talk about this. About him. About her. The real her. "I wish I could've told you sooner," she said."But I... I was so afraid of losing you."

He took a step closer to her and took her hand. "You will never lose me, Karen." The words had escaped his mouth. He hadn't planned anything. His heart always talked when she was there. "I wanna know all of you," he added.

She ran her fingers on his palm and smiled. "So let's hit the ice, young man. Because ice-skating is a part of me."

He should've known. _Touché_. Time to face the music. "All right," he said.

 

They both put on their ice-skates and entered the skating rink. Matt looked like a fawn. He couldn't find his balance. Karen did everything in her power not to laugh, biting her lips, hard. But it was a sight for sore eyes.

 

"Matt ?" she finally inquired. "Are you okay?"

He cleared his throat. _Play it cool, man_. "Yeah, terrific," he replied.

Karen tilted her head to the side. "You've never done this before, have you?"

Matt reached the barrier with difficulty and sighed. "Okay, fine," he admitted. "I can parkour, I can fight, but ice skating... That's a whole other story."

"It's okay, Matt," she told him softly. "Here, let me help."

 

She tried to help him the best she could for about ten minutes, touching his arms, his hands, his back. He wished he could just listen to what she was saying and do it, but he was too focused on her heartbeats and his own to comply. In the end, he was as bad as ten minutes before.

 

She said they should take a break, and left to grab two hot chocolates. Matt leaned against the barrier. He was so, so bad at this. The whole thing. Being around her, ice-skating. This was a disaster.

 

"Sir, do you need some help?"

 

A young boy, around 10 years old, had stopped right in frond of him. Soon, two friends of his joined him.

 

"I'm fine," Matt said. He didn't need the extra humiliation.

"You don't look so fine..." the little girl remarked. "And let's be honest, you kinda suck at this."

"You could use our help, sir," the third kid offered.

 

He had hit rock bottom. Might as well accept their help... Right? Couldn't be any worse, after all.

 

"Okay, how do I do that?" he asked.

The first little boy squatted so as to place his feet the right way. "Just... Your foot has to... Yeah. Like that."

"And you gotta use your arms to find your balance!" the little girl added.

Matt complied. He felt like a scarecrow. "Alright... Better?" he inquired, full of hope.

"Well..." the first little boy grimaced.

"Could be worse," the second one remarked with a shrug. The little girl giggled and covered her mouth with her gloved hand.

"But you're still very bad at this, Sir," she laughed.

Matt lowered his arms. "Jesus..." he sighed, quavering.

"You must really love that lady."

Matt was taken aback by this word. Love. He had never told her. He had never even heard it in his thoughts. But... That's what it was. There was no denying it. He loved Karen Page. So he simply nodded and let this beautiful, terrifying work sink in.

 

* * *

 

"Thanks, have a good day!" Karen grabbed her two hot chocolates and returned to the crime scene. She spotted Matt in the company of three kids, and the scene that unfolded before her eyes left her breathless: they were teaching Matt Murdock how to ice skate. She burst out laughing and almost spilled the beverages.

 

Matt heard her from afar. "Dammit," he mumbled.

"That's a very bad word, Sir," the little girl said with a grin.

Matt shook his head. "Sorry, forget about that."

"So how's your ice-skating lesson going, Sir?" Karen quipped. She rested her elbows on the barrier and took in this unexpected yet pleasing sight.

"I did not fall," Matt deadpanned.

"Yet," the second little boy joked.

"He wanted to impress you," the little girl added.

"Did he, now?" Karen smiled, her eyes never leaving his face.

Matt laughed nervously and hung his head. "Okay, thanks guys, your services are no longer needed." "You need at least two more hours," the little girl sais, her arms folded over her chest.

Karen patted her shoulder. "I'll take it from here, kiddo. Thank you for your help, that one is a handful."

"Good luck, ma'am!"

"So, back to square one, Murdock. C'mon."

"I think I need to do something first. To find my balance."

"Yeah? What's that?"

 

He grabbed her by the waist and kissed her. She closed her eyes, the feeling of his lips against hers intoxicating. It was like coming home. She hadn't forgotten the feeling, the fire of his breath against her nose, her chin. She had been craving this for so long. He buried his hand in her blond hair, and she cupped his cheeks. She didn't know where she was anymore. Was it cold? Was it warm? Morning or evening, day or night, Central Park or a lonely meadow. She didn't know. She felt dizzy, caught in the whirlwind of her own heartbeats. When he finally let go, she didn't dare to open her eyes.

 

"Karen?" she heard.

 

So she did it. She opened her eyes. She saw his smile. And she knew this Christmas would be the best.

 

"We should go ice-skating more often," she quipped, her lips already missing his.

Matt caressed her cheek. "Next time I'll kiss you sooner."

 


End file.
